Jamaica's Prime Minister Bruce Golding has denounced unrest in the capital city Kingston as a "calculated assault on the authority of the state".

He vowed that criminals would not triumph, after supporters of an alleged druglord took to the streets to stop him from being arrested.

One police station was set on fire and two others shot at by suspected supporters of Christopher "Dudus" Coke.

The authorities have declared a state of emergency in parts of Kingston.

The trouble began late last week when the authorities announced they would arrest and extradite Mr Coke to the US.

His supporters set up barricades and said they would fight to protect him.

The BBC's Nick Davis in Montego Bay says the capital now represents a city under siege.

Troops and police have come under fire, and smoke is rising from the burning police station.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8699834.stm

-- Jamaica: State of emergency in Kingston --

Jamaican authorities declared a state of emergency in Kingston after gang members supportive of an alleged drug lord wanted by the United States attacked police stations and blockaded a large swath of the city.

Two police stations were evacuated after being hit with Molotov cocktails, while the status of a third was unclear.

Gang members blocked off a miles-long area of Jamaica's capital city -- mostly in West Kingston -- using vehicles, sandbags, barbed wire and anything else they could find.